Christmas in July 2011 from Focus PR on Vimeo.

We recently held our annual ‘Christmas in July’ media event to showcase clients’ products for the second half of the year but, to stand out from the crowd, we ditched the fake snow and mince pies and plumped for a village fete theme.  Over 80 journalists flocked to Portland Place to source stories and products, many of them visiting a wide range of similar Christmas events the same day which they admitted often blur into one by 5pm!  Not only did they love our candy floss, lucky dip and other attractions, they also went away armed with a wide range of new material.  As one journalist from The Sun commented, “Yours is my fifth Christmas in July event today, and by far the most fun and memorable”.

Notable highlights were UKTV inviting new client London Basement Company to be a part of a new series they’re filming, ITV1′s LK Today looking to feature ShoeDazzle’s co-founder Kim Kardashian when the UK website officially launches in September and masses of interest from beauty writers in the new products from clients such as Eylure, Collection 2000 and Elegant Touch.

Have a look at this film to get a flavour of the event.

Last week saw the spectacular and one-of-a-kind Rolls-Royce 102EX Phantom Experimental Electric take to London in style. The Focus PR team invited the technology press down to the London dealership in Berkeley Square to take a closer look at the car as part of its tour around the world to carefully test the opinions and reactions to alternative drive-train options of a range of stakeholders including owners, enthusiasts, members of the public and the media. 

Press including Stuff, T3, Wired, CNET and iGizmo came to see the car and get up close and personal with the technology behind the world’s first battery electric vehicle for the ultra-luxury segment. Find out what they thought of the car here and here (go to pages 4 & 5). Chief engineer, Andrew Martin was on-hand to advise on the achievements of the impressive electric car which include the ability to reach a top speed of 100mph and a 0-60mph time of under eight seconds, largely down to the fact that the car is powered by the largest passenger car battery in the world. Distinguishing it from the standard Phantom, the 102EX design uses an Atlantic Chrome exterior consisting of 16 coats of a highly reflective paint, using ceramic nano particles, giving a wet impression to the car. More remarkable too is that the leather interior is Seton Corinova, an experimental vegetable-tanned leather that accentuates the curves and creases of the leather

Find out more about the Rolls-Royce Motor Cars technology and contribute to the debate on electric luxury at www.electricluxury.com

Fast forward a few months and the England cricket team is returning from Australia after a victorious Ashes series, the first English win of the diminutive trophy on Australian soil for 24 years.  Not surprisingly, the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has a spring in its step as it begins its search for a new sponsor for England’s home test matches, after failing to agree a deal with the current backer, Npower. 

With the sports world and potential sponsors all limbering up in advance of next year’s Olympic Games in London, it will be fascinating to chart the winners and losers both on the field and off.  Perhaps more than any other marketing discipline, sponsorship is a long game and securing the rights to a team or sports person is only the start of the process (and the tip of the iceberg, investment-wise).  An integrated activation plan and a not-insignificant cash injection are pretty crucial to deriving serious bang for your buck.

Without wanting to sound mean-spirited, as we know from our last Ashes victory (and the England rugby team’s World Cup win a few years ago), things can quickly go sour and a triumphant team today can be tomorrow’s also-rans.